Train from Da Nang to Nha Trang

Inside Da Nang Station

The 8-hour train from Da Nang to Nha Trang was the second overnight train ride, and the third of four train trips I took in Vietnam.

I had so much fun of the first train ride, in which I stayed up all night celebrating New Years with a bunch of drunk Germans, that I knew there was no way this train ride could be more fun.

The first thing I noticed when I boarded the train was how dingy it was. The trin I took from Hanoi was pristine. This first-class sleeper carriage had the same basic style, but lacked the finer details of the previous train. The trash cans were missing. There was no TV, no storage under the bed, the floor was dirty, the beds were not made. Had this been my first train I wouldn’t have minded, but having already experienced the superior train I was a bit disappointed. Fortunately my berth mates were really cool. They were a young couple form London and we stayed up until odd hours chatting. It was a calm night but still very entertaining.

I wrote the following in my diary that night:

“Staring out the window of our moving train, looking at the pitch black darkness. The sky is like a black pearl, a very deep, deep purple, lighter in the horizon. In contrast to that the trees are completely black. There is some extra exhilarating about looking at a night scene from a moving train. Usually when you look at a scene of the countryside, a forest or a rice paddy, at night you imagine it being still and quiet,  but looking at those scenes with the noise of the train, that churning, moving across the tracks at a fast pace, that speed, it’s neither still nor quiet, and something about that is exhilarating.”

Outside Da Nang Station

Hoi An Instagram Diary

Cafe Profile: Cocobox, Hoi An, Vietnam

The always busy storefront of Cocobox

Despite the plethora of restaurants and charming buildings, Hoi An is not for the cafe lover. Fortunately, the historic area seems to have free open wifi, so that’s not the issue. The coffee is.  There are markedly few cafes for and even fewer places to find a decent latte in the town. In fact, there might be only one. 

I arrived in Hoi An just months after Cocobox opened. It seemed to be a joint Vietnamese-expat venture, serving up mostly organic fruit juices and vegan sandwiches. But here’s a secret: they have the best latte in town. They also have the best vegan tofu and eggplant sandwich in town, or perhaps, in the whole world. Cocobox instantly became my favorite place in Hoi An.

It is open from 9:00-9:00, but a word of caution, it’s a small place and fills up quickly, and stay full all day. During lunch there is a line out the door. Plan accordingly. 

limited seating

the juice bar

the menu

Delicious Iced Lattes

that's salt on the side, not sugar

chocolate cake

the most amazing vegan eggplant sandwich ever

Photo Diary: Best of Hoi An, Vietnam

An Ode to the Town of Hoi An

This is an ode to the town where the orchids grow on vines and hang down like lanterns.

To the town where taxi drivers park on gravely patches alongside the road, stick incense into their license plates, and slowly watch it burn.

To the town whose perfume is made from that potion of orchids and incense, whose melody is made from the creaking of bicycle wheels and the trumpeting of horns.

Now we are in this quant city whose beauty borders on boastful. In the afternoons there are so few cars that I can briefly lower my alertness when crossing the streets. It is wonderful to be able to day dream on the streets again. I welcome the walkability of this city. It is also a visual feast in its existence. Offering plenty even to the casual stroller. I like that about a place. I don’t want to wait in line a pay to see it’s main attractions. The city itself should be an attraction.

On the train we followed tracks that hugged the coastline’s waters and danced around the mountain’s peaks. It was the brightest day we had seen in Vietnam and the slick palm trees shimmered like glass in a leafy green forest. Strangely, he clouds didn’t retreat with the sun, they grasped the tops of the mountains until their peak were beyond visibility. It wasn’t a tight grip, something gentle, even kind. I saw these views facing backwards on the train. I hate looking backwards but I had no choice. The seats in the train car were oddly arranged so that half faced forward and half faced backward, with passengers facing each other in the middle. The views in the distance were slow moving, but close I felt the images were being  pulled from me at a tremendous force. Faster than a curtain disappears to the sides of a stage. We passed a small town where the backs of homes faced the train tracks, and one clotheslined yard ripped  past the other. If I could have seen them coming I would have known. But they snuck up behind me and vanished into the edge of the window frame before I knew what I was looking at. One clothesline after the other.

- Sunday , Jan. 4, 2015,  Nam Cafe, Hoi An, 7:12 pm

Train from Hue to Da Nang

The ride form Hue to Da Nang only takes four hours and costs less than $5. This is the recommend  method for going between the two cities, due to the convenience and fair pricing of a train, as the spectacular view along the coastline. Unfortunately this was the worst of four train rides we had in Vietnam.

We booked AC soft seats for the ride, which ended up facing backwards. I hate sitting backwards, but had no choice. Awkwardly, not all the seats in the car faced the same direction. Half faced backwards, and half faced forwards, which means that you are staring at the person in front of you for four hours. Also, the Vietnamese have a different, albeit smaller, sense of personal space than the Americans…or the Japanese…or anyone I have met from any country anywhere. This means that them and their shit are all up in you and your shit. It drove me nuts. People were splayed out sleeping in the aisles, the girl in front of me draped all she bags and clothes over my seat into my area.

Although I had a window seat, I was on the wrong side of the train, not on the side of the coast. So while the people beside me enjoyed beautiful views of the sae shore, I was staring at grass and garbage. 
Train fail. 

Platform at Hue Station

The awkward seating

I was pretty excited when this large tomb came into view

Scenery on my side (the opposite side had better views

Disembarking in Da Nang